


Gladion Needs a Vacation!

by a_small_town_duck



Series: Hau and Gladion's Vacation Stories [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Everyone is older, Fluff, M/M, Romantic Fluff, They are all older here, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, aether president gladion, ain't no childrens here, champion moon, i cri, kahuna hau, my childrens, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-06
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2018-09-28 15:15:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10126823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_small_town_duck/pseuds/a_small_town_duck
Summary: Hau decides that Gladion, the President of the Aether Foundation, needs a vacation. Everything starts off relatively normal. But Gladion begins to fall in love with Hau who is too oblivious to realize. (This will be a series with Hau and Gladion visiting each region).





	1. Chapter 1

The President of the Aether Foundation sat at his desk. He was clicking away on his keyboard as usual, something work related. Platinum hair fell down into his face and fell in a neat ponytail that rest against his back. His pokémon lay at his feet, snoring. Even it was bored. This had been going on for hours. The man stretched and his back made a loud cracking sound before he cracked his neck and knuckles. Oh he was so sore. But he had to finish this last part of his report. Only a few more sentences. No interruptions. He can do this.

_Knock knock knock!_

              Who was that? The man saved his work before calling to the source of the knocking. A woman walked in. Her face was as friendly and motherly as usual. Her smiling face, with her round and pink cheeks, made the man relax and brush his choppy blonde bangs out of his eyes.

              “Oh, Wicke, what is it?”

“Master Gladion, the Kahuna of Melemele Island is here to see you. He says it’s important Kahuna business that you simply must hear.”

“Send him in,” Gladion’s lips curled up into a smile.

              Before Wicke even left the room, a Raichu zoomed into the room, nearly tackling Gladion. The Silvally perked up seeing the other pokémon and the two began to nuzzle and play with each other. Following the Raichu, a tall man walked in. His hair had certainly gotten longer since the last time he had visited. His shoulders were much broader and he looked more mature but he still had that excited, child-like smile.

              “Kahuna Hau. How lovely it is to see you,” Gladion said, a grin spreading across his lips as he leaned against his hand.

“Alola Gladion! How’s work going? I haven’t seen you in ages! Being the Aether President must be hard work, yeah?”

“Of course it is. I have to write a report and I’m actually working on one now and I’m almost finished,” he flashed a happy, yet tired, smile.

“Okay, well then I’ll wait until you finish. Shouldn’t be too long, right?”

“Just a few more sentences…”

              Hau took a seat next to his Raichu and the Silvally. Gladion clicked away at the keys again but he occasionally glanced over at Hau. The Kahuna was much more muscular than when they had first met. It was…nice. He shook his head. What was he thinking? Come on, Gladion, focus. Two more sentences. He hesitated on the keys and cracked his back. Ugh. His back hurt so much. Why did it hurt?

              “Hey, Gladion? Are you okay?” Hau asked when he saw his friend express his discomfort.

“My back hurts…nothing too serious.”

“Are you finished yet? It’s been awhile…”

“Just one more…sentence…finished! Maybe now we can help those Psyducks with their headaches.” A bright smile curled his lips.

“Good…Now, come on! Your vacation starts now!” Hau grabbed Gladion’s hand and pulled him out of his chair, causing Gladion to blush.

“Wh-What? Hau! I can’t go on vacation now! Who will run everything?”

“Me and Ms. Wicke got it covered. You need this vacation! You are always working so we are going to have fun!”

              Gladion allowed himself to be dragged to the mansion on the roof of the Aether Paradise and into his room. Hau immediately got to work, finding everything his friend would need to pack for his surprise vacation. The Aether President couldn’t help but smile at Hau. The man was adamant about everyone having fun no matter what they did. Fun was eating malasadas on the beach and swimming in the ocean with Lapras and gazing up at the stars… Gladion found himself looking forward to this vacation. He cracked his back again which caused Hau to stop.

              “Okay. You need help with your back. Take your jacket off.”

              Gladion blushed hearing Hau telling him that. He pulled his white jacket off slowly before biting his lip and looking up at Hau. Back when they were younger, he would have never taken orders from anyone. And he certainly wouldn’t have worn white clothing. He was left in a black tank top that was fitted to his body. Moon got that tank top for him. She said he needed to stop wearing long sleeves so much or else he would get overheated. He looked over at Hau, a pink dusting still on his cheeks.

              “Now, lay on your stomach. Come on, Gladion. You need to lay down or this won’t work.”

“Uh…what are you planning to do?”

“I’m going to give you a massage, now lay down.”

              Hau clearly wasn’t taking no for an answer so Gladion lay on the mattress. He felt the bed dip and shift as Hau moved to straddle his hips. This position made Gladion feel beyond awkward. His hair, which was still pulled into a ponytail, was pushed to the side. After a moment of nothing but the sound of their breathing, Hau’s fingers started to massage Gladion’s back. It felt amazing. Hau’s hands were like magic as they worked out every knot in his back. His eyes fluttered shut and he leaned into Hau’s amazing fingers.

              “Much better, yeah? You seemed really tense and you kept cracking your back.”

“I slouch when I sit. That’s why…”

“Maybe you should spend more time outside instead of working inside all the time.”

“I do go outside. But I have to make reports after working in the field…nnngh…” Gladion couldn’t hold back the sound. The massage felt so nice.

“You are really enjoying this. Maybe I should come massage your back more often!”

“I will pay you to do this every day.”

“Haha! Maybe I’ll take you up on that!” Gladion could practically hear Hau’s wide smile.

              By the time Hau had finished, Gladion was actually drooling. His face burned a bright red when he realized and he sat up quickly once Hau moved. Luckily, the other man didn’t seem to notice. Hau was as blissful and cheery as ever. Gladion remembered thinking that Hau was weak when they first met because Hau was just so carefree and didn’t care about winning. Now that boy was a strong and powerful Kahuna. He couldn’t help but smile slightly at the thought.

              “What are you smiling at?”

“You…haven’t changed, have you?”

“I’m stronger!”

“But still carefree and happy…”

              Hau just shrugged with a smile. He wasn’t one for serious conversations. Soon, he finished packing what Gladion needed for his vacation, including his pokémon. Of course they would have to have pokémon battles. That was a must. Gladion felt a little rusty, so he was eager to battle more. Hau was talking about maybe participating in a battle royale again. This vacation was starting to sound like a lot of fun. Maybe he did need this.

              Gladion was dragged out of the Aether Paradise after he said his goodbyes and he sunk down into a seat on the boat that was taking them to Melemele Island. He looked at Hau who sat next to him. His broad shoulders were relaxed and the man stretched out his legs. The afternoon sunlight seemed to make Hau glow a little brighter. Gladion’s eyes traced along the muscles that could clearly be seen under Hau’s clothes. A soft pink blush dusted across his cheeks when Hau caught him staring.

              “Something wrong?” Hau asked, tipping his head in concern.

“It’s…It’s nothing. I was just seeing what pokémon you remind me of.”

“Yeah? What pokémon do you think I’m most like?”

              Gladion thought for a moment before a smirk curled his lips up.

“Probably a munchlax. Because you are always eating malasada.”

“Okay…well…hmm…what pokémon are you…aww this isn’t fair, you know loads more pokémon than I do!”

“I’m a scientist, Hau. It’s literally my job.” Gladion laughed a bit.

“I think you evolved more than me, Gladion…You used to be all grumpy and mysterious…like a murkrow!” Hau laughed happily at his friend. “But now you’re all happy and not as serious.”

“So…” Gladion began, smiling still. “I’m like a cherrim who changed from night form to day form!”

“What kind of pokémon is that?”

“It’s from Sinnoh… I should take you there sometime. It’s colder than Alola though.”

“You’re totally taking me to Sinnoh someday! That’s a promise and you're gonna take me there!” Hau laughed happily.

“Only if you can beat me in a pokémon battle once we’re off this boat.” Gladion smirked back.

“You’re on!”


	2. Chapter 2

 

              Gladion blinked his eyes open. His eyes scanned the boat and he could see, from the orange glow that it was sunset. They’d been on the water all day. No wonder he was so tired that he fell asleep. The gentle movement of the boat and the serene silence could lull almost anyone (who wasn’t Hau) to sleep. As he woke up more, he realized he was laying on something. It couldn’t be his seat. It was softer and warmer. Like it was radiating body heat. Upon further inspection he saw that the familiar tan skin was centimeters from his face. No, millimeters. He sat up quickly. Was he asleep on Hau’s shoulder the whole day? Gladion had the brightest blush spread across his cheeks.

              “Good morning, Snorlax! Or rather, good evening!” Hau laughed when he saw Gladion sit up quickly. “Did you sleep well? I would have woke you up but you looked comfortable. N’ I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“It’s fine… Are we close to Melemele?” Gladion looked out the window and he could see the island.

“Yeah! We should be there shortly…You know tomorrow night we’re having a festival.”

“A festival?”

“Yeah it’s— Oh! Look! Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet!”

              Sure enough, Gladion could make out the figures of the professors waving to them on the docks. They were nice people and he was grateful for when they took care of his sister. Recently, he and Kukui had been chatting through video and emails about their findings. It would be nice to see the man in person.

              The boat soon docked in the harbor of Hau’oli city and Hau and Gladion exited it. He couldn’t help but notice how nice the afternoon sun made Hau look. The soft, orange light made Hau look like he was glowing and Gladion couldn’t help but blush again. He looked up at Kukui and smiled softly but the man looked like he noticed the blush. A smirk curled his lips up.

              “Hey cousin! Glad to see you out of the conservatory for once. Make any headway on the Psyduck problem?” The man pulled Gladion into a big hug.

“Y-Yeah! Oof…Yeah I mean…I need to test some of the secret medicine the Champion of Sinnoh used to relieve them of their headaches…but I’m on vacation now…according to Hau.”

“Can’t work yourself too hard, now! You have to have a little fun sometimes! Come on! I’ll treat you kids to dinner!” Burnet exclaimed as she joined in the hug with her husband.

              Gladion was soon released from the tight hug and the four of them made their way to the Malasada restaurant. Professor Burnet and Hau were talking excitedly about the ultrabeasts that Moon had captured before Kukui joined in. While it did seem like an interesting conversation, Gladion was content just to listen. He found himself observing Hau again. The man clearly resembled old Hala a lot. He even seemed to be wearing the same clothes as Hala. Of course, they fit Hau better. Hau’s frame was much more muscular, much more toned. His hair was longer too. A lot of it had been pulled up into a ponytail but the rest fell down his back. Gladion just wanted to reach out and touch it. It looked so fluffy— he accidentally walked into a street lamp because he was watching Hau instead of where he was walking.

              “Whoa! Gladion! Are you alright?” Hau yelped as he rushed over to his friend.

“Y-yeah. I was just lost in thought…sorry.” Gladion rubbed his head.

“Here, let me look…” Professor Burnet came over to him and checked his forehead. There was a pretty nasty looking bump. “Ouch… That’s gonna sting for a little bit…do you want some ice?”

“N-No. I think I’ll be fine… It doesn’t hurt that badly. I promise.”

              Reluctantly she backed off and they were soon sitting in the restaurant. Hau kept looking over at him with a concerned stare.

              “Gladion, that bump looks nasty…” Hau mumbled softly.

“It doesn’t hurt, promise.” He was lying. It really stung.

“Will you at least let me do something my Tutu always did when I got hurt?”

“Yeah sure. What is it…?”

              Gladion’s voice trailed off when he felt a pair of lips press against the bump on his forehead. His eyes widened and he sort of stared in shock. Hau was going to be the death of him if he kept pulling crap like that.

              “Tutu always said that kissing made bumps feel better!”

“Well I forgot about all my pain.” Gladion looked up and saw the two professors smirking at each other.

His eyebrows furrowed into a glare. What was so funny about him getting embarrassed by a little kiss? Or maybe…they knew. Had he sleepily mumbled something to Kukui during one of their all night chats? Did they know about the stupid little crush he had on Hau when he was 13? All these thoughts ran through his mind and he was sort of panicking. He didn’t have a crush on Hau now. No way. Besides, Hau would never think of him in that way. Hau probably wanted a pretty girl who wasn’t a complete loner who sat inside all day. His thoughts were interrupted when plates were set down in front of them.

The malasada was delicious and of course Hau still loved it more than he seemed to love everything else. It was cute watching the big Kahuna still get excited over the small things. Hau was just cute all around and it made Gladion happy to see his smile. This was his first ever human best friend so it was natural that he would get all happy around Hau. Not some silly crush. Just happy to see that breathtaking smile. He shook his head to clear it. Gladion really needed to pull himself together.

Once they had finished eating, they paid for their food and made their way out of the restaurant. Kukui and Burnet had some “business” with Samson Oak to attend to so that left Gladion alone with Hau on the road to Iki town.

“Bye Hau, bye Gladion! We’ll see you tomorrow!”

“Yeah! And don’t let Gladion walk into any more poles!”

The professors walked off and soon Gladion and Hau were on their way to Iki town. The sun had set and yet the moon was bright so that they could see where they were walking. The whole island seemed to be relaxing as the moon rose in the sky. Gladion let out a deep sigh and he smiled. He hadn’t been out in nature like this for a while. Hau noticed the sigh and he looked over at Gladion.

“We’re almost to town…It’s really nice out tonight. I love the nighttime here in Iki town. It’s all calm and relaxed and there’s no worries. Just nighttime.”

“Yeah. We don’t get nights like this out at the Aether Paradise. It’s awfully comfortable here…”

“Mhm. Oh. Here we are! My house is over there. Don’t worry, I had your stuff delivered to my house…”

They walked up the dirt road to the large house near the center of town. It was late by the time they got there and man houses were turning out their lights. Hau pushed open the door and was greeted by his little Leafeon. The kahuna let out a loud laugh that was music to Gladion’s ears. The Leafeon walked over to Gladion and sniffed him gently before rubbing her head against his leg. Even Hau’s pokémon were sweet and adorable.

“Ah, Gladion, you must be really tired. Why don’t we head upstairs? We can sleep in my room.”

“That sounds like a great idea. I feel like I need to sleep for at least a week to feel well-rested again— wait. _Your_ room? Oh I can take a couch if that would work better for you.”

“Nonsense! Your back is hurting you. You can just take my bed!” Hau said as he led Gladion up the stairs to the bedroom.

“But where will you sleep?”

“I can sleep on the floor or the couch.”

“But I’m just a guest! You should take the bed.”

“Well I want you to have it...Or there is another solution.”

“And what is that?” Gladion asked rather cautiously.

“We can just share the bed!”

Gladion blushed deeply. Sharing a bed…with Hau. Sharing a bed with Hau?! His brain seemed to shut down. Gladion.exe has stopped working. Apparently Hau said something to him but he hadn’t heard. He was too busy trying to process the idea of sleeping in the same bed as Hau.

“Why don’t we share the bed? Because then we won’t have to argue.”

“Uh-huh…” Gladion wasn’t thinking clearly.

“Perfect!”

 Hau began to take off his clothes and he was left in only his boxer shorts. It took everything in Gladion’s power not to stare at the man. Slowly, he pulled off his own lab coat and his long pants. A bright pink color seemed to color his pale skin. This was happening…this was actually happening. Gladion’s heart seemed to speed up. He looked away for a moment to pull his hair out of its ponytail. However the hair tie seemed to get stuck in his hair.

“Gladion?”

“What? I’m fine…”

“You need any help?”

Gladion sighed in defeat after struggling a few moments and he relinquished his ponytail to Hau. The Kahuna began to work his gentle fingers through his blonde hair. Occasionally, Hau would accidentally tug a little too hard but he would apologize. Gladion realized just how close he was to Hau. How close he was to Hau’s bare chest. That lean muscle. That dark skin. He couldn’t ignore what was going on a little lower as much as he tried but he tried not to dwell on that too much. Eventually, the hair tie became untangled and Gladion’s blonde hair fell neatly over his shoulders.

“That thing was tangled in your hair to bad! It was almost like your hair was a Dugtrio’s hair!”

“Thank you for helping me though. I really appreciate it. We should…we should get to bed, yeah?”

“Yeah! I’m really tired and we need to be well rested for tomorrow.”

“By the way,” Gladion started as he crawled into bed, “you never explained the festival to me.”

“It’s sort of like a wishing festival. It celebrates some ancient pokémon that grants wishes or something. But at the festival we all make a wish and then battle each other. Whoever wins the battle gets their wish granted…pretty cool, right?”

“Yeah that sounds…uh…pretty…pretty…cool…”

He watched as Hau sat on the bed and he realized just how small the bed was. When they laid down, Gladion was inches away from Hau’s chest and face and well…everything. Hau was out like a light the second his head hit the pillow. That left Gladion awake and blushing like an idiot. His face felt so hot he felt like he was a Slugma. Okay, okay, Gladion. It’s just Hau. Just your friend Hau, he thought. He took a deep breath and tried to relax a bit. When he had just finally begun to relax, Hau rolled over and placed an arm over Gladion.

Gladion never realized how accurate the term “internally screaming” was until now. His whole face was redder than a Macargo. Hau was _cuddling_ him. For a moment Gladion just lie there frozen in shock. He looked up to make sure that Hau was still asleep. Sure enough, the man was in a deep sleep and snoring softly.

He took a deep breath. Maybe a little snuggle wouldn’t be so bad. Gladion nuzzled his nose against Hau’s collarbone and he realized how much Hau smelled like the salty, sea breeze. It was nice. Better than nice. And Hau was so warm that he seemed to radiate heat. It was comfortable and Gladion couldn’t help but snuggle closer.

It wasn’t long until Gladion was on the verge of dreams.

“Goodnight, Hau…”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahh i am so sorry this is so late. I've finally got a free moment to write. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 3:

              Gladion woke up in a gentle embrace. It didn’t dawn on him that he was still in Hau’s arms until he looked up and saw Hau’s sleeping face. His face was nuzzled into the crook of Hau’s neck and he gasped slightly when he realized he had wrapped his legs around Hau’s body. Oh no. Oh no no no no. Slowly he detangled himself from Hau so that it didn’t look like he was desperately clinging to his friend. He wasn’t going to admit how much he wanted to stay in Hau’s embrace. In fact, he wanted to stay all cuddled up to Hau all day. Hau smelled and felt so nice. Gladion’s heart thumped and pounded in his chest so hard that he couldn’t help but blush.

              Oh how he had fallen hard. He had a crush on Hau. He had this stupid crush since he was a stupid teenager. No matter how hard he tried to shake this stupid crush he could not do it. Gladion let out a soft whine.

              Why did he have to have a crush on Hau? Why did he have to suffer like this? His heart thumped more as he thought about cuddling Hau more. Why did he want to keep cuddling Hau?

              Gladion almost screamed when Hau sleepily pulled him closer and he could not help the bright red blush that seemed to spread over his entire body. Part of him wanted to wake Hau up so he didn’t have to keep internally screaming every time Hau did anything. But the other part craved this sort of attention. The other part lived off of the gentle touches and the smiles and the kisses. Maybe it was from a lack of attention from his mother but he would like to think his crush on Hau wasn’t the result of a rough childhood.

              Hau moved like he was about to wake up and Gladion quickly closed his eyes as the larger man stirred. The Kahuna moved and propped himself up on his elbow, the bed dipping underneath the weight. For a moment he was silent before Gladion felt gentle touches in his hair, pulling strands away from his face. He willed himself not to blush feeling the touches.

              “Heh, cute… Sorry, I have to get up now. I hope I don’t wake you.”

              The voice was nothing more than a whisper that breathed against Gladion’s ear. Tingles ran down his back and he almost shuddered. He felt the bed dip and creak as Hau detangled himself from his body and the bed. Gladion rolled over and watched through his hooded eyes. Muscles moved and rolled as Hau stretched and Gladion smiled softly. Oh he was beyond attractive. Too attractive. It made his heart flutter and _feelings_ rush through his body. He wait until Hau was out of the room before sitting up and covering his now-red face. Hau called him cute! _Hau called him cute!_

              He could almost hear Kukui laughing at him. The stoic and cool Gladion had a stupid childish crush on Hau. On the boy he met years ago during a battle. The boy who had not a care in the world. The boy who claimed the sea sang to him and that the breeze guided him. This was the boy who had grown into a kahuna. He was a boy who was no longer a boy, at least on the outside. Oh this crush hurt Gladion’s very soul. He longed to be with Hau.

              Imagine, Hau putting his arms around him again and whispering in his ear. Oh Gladion wanted that so badly. He craved it so bad. His chest hurt at the thought of it never happening. There was no way Hau would ever love him. Gladion knew it would never happen. Hau was a kahuna, he was happy, and he certainly didn’t like boys. With a loud whine, Gladion laid back down on the bed.

              Eventually, the smell of pancakes lured Gladion out of his self-pity and he got dressed before going to investigate. Hau was standing at the stove making pancakes and singing an old Alolan song to himself. He was only in a tank top and shorts and his hair was loose around his neck. After a moment, Hau looked up to see Gladion and he smiled so brightly that Gladion was nearly blinded.

              “Good morning, Gladion! I’m making pancakes!”

“I-I can see that. Your Raichu seems very excited about that fact.”

              The pokémon was currently zooming around the kitchen with its plates of pancakes that were drenched in maple syrup. It looked incredibly happy. Happier than its owner even.

              “How many pancakes do you want?” Hau asked happily, humming slightly as he watched his pokémon.

“Just a couple. I’m still full from last night.”

              Hau went back to making pancakes and humming the same song again before breaking out into song. His voice was very smooth and Gladion fell in love more. The old language tumbled from Hau’s lips so fluidly that he was absolutely captivated. It was like Hau was using the move Attract. Oh no, he sounded like Kukui now.

              “Hey, Hau? What’s that song you’re singing? It’s nice…” Gladion said softly, still captivated.

“Oh it’s an old song. Tutu taught it to me.” Hau seemed a little sad mentioning old Hala.

“I’m sorry I brought him up…you must miss him.”

“Yeah, well, you lost your dad in a wormhole and your mom is…well…”

“Hau, I don’t care about my life, I care about you…”

              A smile curled up Hau’s lips and he gently hugged Gladion for a moment. Gladion was squished up against his strong chest and he gasped softly. Oh gosh. He hoped that the growing feelings in his body didn’t cause anything to happen or that would be really embarrassing. The smell of overcooked pancakes broke them from their hug. The burnt pancakes were fed to Hau’s Incineroar before the two men sat down at the table to eat breakfast.

              After breakfast, Hau went to get dressed for the festival. Gladion walked outside to wait for Hau and pulled out his laptop to call Kukui.  Once his headphones were plugged in, he clicked the professor’s icon. He wait for a moment before the black screen lit up and revealed the dorky pokémon professor.

              “Hey, Gladion! What’s up? How’s your head?”

“It…It’s fine…um…so…I don’t think I can do this vacation…”

“Why? What happened?”

“Ummm…I can’t tell you…”

“Why?” he questioned, growing serious.

“It’s stupid.”

“Oh come on! You can always tell Kukui when something is up!”

Gladion wait for a moment before responding in a soft mumble, “I think Hau used attract on me.”

“I knew it!”

“Shut up!”

“You do like him! Honey! Our boy has a crush!”

“It’s not that big of a deal!” Gladion interjected, feeling like he shouldn’t have said anything.

“Yes it is! You have a crush and you need to tell him!”

“I can’t just tell him! It’s…It’s not that simple…”

              Kukui was about to answer when Professor Burnet poked her head into the webcam. Gladion sort of sighed with relief seeing her. Kukui was a little too excited with his recent discovery.

              “Gladion, Kukui is right. The best thing to do is just be honest with Hau. I’m sure everything will go well. The worst he can say is no!”

“Ugh…this is too much pressure…oh he’s coming back. I gotta go.”

              Gladion switched the computer off and looked up at Hau with a soft smile. Hau was dressed in an outfit reminiscent of Old Hala. He liked seeing Hau in this outfit. He truly looked like a real Kahuna, and seeing his lean muscles in the tank top he wore was a huge plus. Gladion looked down at his own outfit, a black tank top and slightly torn shorts (cuddling with Null had a bit of downsides) and he couldn’t help but feel underwhelming. Hau was so attractive naturally and Gladion still looked like a pale emo kid. He was broken from his thoughts when they had to leave to go to the festival to help set up.

              People and pokémon alike helped to hang lights, set up rings for battling, and make food for everyone. Gladion was tasked with making leis and flower crowns for everyone. He sat off alone in the shade as he thread the flowers into the circular shape. He leaned back against his Silvally who was fast asleep. From where he sat he could see Hau as he worked. He’d taken his overcoat off and displayed his muscular arms again. Imagine being held in those arms again, Gladion thought. He was almost desperate for it. If only he could actually tell Hau exactly how he felt. A long sigh escaped his lips and he went back to his work.

              He heard footsteps and looked up to see Kukui. Gladion looked down again after mumbling a soft hello. Kukui took a seat next to him and began to help with the flowers.

              “So…Hau used attract on you? When did you realize you were immobilized by love?” the professor asked with a soft smile.

“Shut up…ugh…it was this morning. We had to share a bed and in his sleep he wrapped his arms around me and it felt so nice. And then he was singing and…” Gladion whined as he hid his face in his hands.

“There’s nothing wrong with falling in love. Why are you so against it? What are you afraid of?”

“He’s a boy…”

“Yeah? I fell in love with a boy once.”

“Who?”

“Not important, what else are you afraid of?”

“Just…I’m afraid I’ll have my heart broken. What if he rejects me? What if…he falls in love with someone else? What if I never move on? What if-“

              Kukui listened with a serious expression on his face before looking up at Gladion with a soft smile. It was almost sort of like a fatherly smile and Gladion felt a bit more at ease. He often forgot that the professor was actually an adult and had experience with these sort of things.

              “Okay…So you’re afraid. Love is scary. It’s like it used scary face on you and your speed drops harshly. But you know, doing nothing means that nothing will come out of it. Just like doing nothing in a battle means you lose. And, in the end, no matter what happens, you’ll be happy knowing that he’s happy. That’s how love works.”

              Gladion sat for a moment and nodded. What Kukui said was true. He only wanted Hau to be happy. But…that still left the problem of actually admitting his feelings to Hau. He’d never actually felt this way about anyone before.

              “Hey Hau! I’m just helping Gladion out with the flower crowns,” Kukui called out when he saw Hau approach.

“Alola Professor! I was actually coming over to do the same thing.” Hau flashed a smile at Gladion and Gladion felt his cheeks heat up.

              They soon were lost in their work as Hau and the professor chatted. When they were finished with the flower crowns and leis, Hau gently placed a ring of flowers on Gladion’s head. He let out a happy laugh that made Gladion’s heart soar. Gladion placed a lei around Silvally’s neck with a soft smile. The festival was beginning when they walked back to the town square. The people of Iki town were soon scattered around, enjoying sweets and battles.

              Hau stood off to the side, a pink lei around his neck. He laughed happily watching the young children battle. After a moment he turned to Gladion, his eyes big and bright, just like his smile.

              “I never told you the full story of this festival, Gladion.”

“Oh? Yeah, you didn’t. Could you maybe tell me?”

“Alright, so, long ago, the people in Alola heard about a pokémon in a faraway region that could grant wishes. But the pokémon only awakened every 1000 years. Now, the people in Alola wanted to wish on this pokémon but the region it lived in was so far away so they were never around to wish upon this pokémon.”

“This pokémon sounds like Jirachi, a legendary pokémon native to Hoenn.”

“Come on, Glad! Let me finish!”

“Okay, okay, go on.”

“Alright, so the years passed and the people in Alola gave up hope on ever wishing on this pokémon. But one night, this very night, a man was sitting on the beach watching as his beloved danced and sang without him. He was too scared to actually confess his love, so he sat, wishing from afar. The entire town knew that this man was a coward. The town even made fun of him for his cowardliness. But as he sat, a bright light shone in the sky and a pokémon’s cry could be heard. The man, remembering the old legend of a pokémon that grants wishes, wished for courage to talk and dance with his beloved. A surge of courage shot through the man and he got up and began to dance. The town was amazed, as the man had never danced in his life. When he was done dancing, he confessed his love. Ever since then the town held a festival for the wishing pokémon every year.”

“Is that true?” Gladion smiled hearing the story. It was cute.

“I dunno. But Tutu said this was the night he confessed to his wife.”

“So where does battling factor in to this? Everyone is battling.”

“Oh! Well, to honor Tapu Koko, who loves battling, we have battles to determine whose wish gets granted.”

“Makes sense- whoa hey!” Null nudged Gladion in the back and pushed him toward Hau. “What’s gotten into you, Null? You wanna battle?”

“Hey! That’s a great idea. Let’s have a battle, you and me, one on one!”

 “I don’t see why not…”

“Alright! Let’s go!”

              Hau grabbed Gladion’s wrist and dragged him to one of the battling rings, calling Kukui over to help referee the match. Before the battle started they had to make their wish. Gladion thought for a moment. He remembered the feeling of waking up in Hau’s arms. He remembered Hau’s soft breath against his ear. And then he was suddenly the man in the story, too afraid to dance. He wanted to dance with Hau. Silently, he made his wish. _I want to dance with Hau._

              The battle soon started. It was Gladion’s Silvally versus Hau’s Raichu. Normal type versus Psychic type. Gladion thought for a moment before taking the initiative and attacking.

              “Null! Use crush claw!”

“Raichu, dodge it and use psychic!”

              Null was hit by a powerful psychic blast and Gladion gasped softly. Whoa, Hau had certainly grown stronger since their last battle. A smirk curled up his lips. No more going easy on Hau.

              “Raichu, quick attack now!”

“Stop it, with crunch!”

              The Raichu was stopped by the dark type attack but it was still in the fight. It continued to zoom around the battle field while Null watched in careful concentration. Gladion also observed the psychic pokémon. He quickly found an opening.

“Use X-Scissor!”

“Dodge it and use thunderbolt!”

              Null took a hit with thunderbolt and Gladion realized that his pokémon was paralyzed. With a much slower pokémon he wracked his brain for answers. What rotten luck!

“Raichu, psychic!”

“Dodge it!”

              But Null could not dodge it fast enough and suffered another attack. The pokémon collapsed and Kukui determined that the battle was won by Hau. Hau smiled happily after his win and walked up to Null to help heal the pokémon. Gladion smiled as well but it was a bittersweet smile. Sure, he was happy that Hau would get his wish but he really wanted to dance with Hau. There was technically nothing stopping him from dancing with Hau but he could really do with a courage boost. Once Silvally was taken care of and returned to its pokeball, Gladion walked over and held his hand out to Hau.

              “You’ve really gotten stronger. Your Raichu is incredible.”

“Yeah, and I have to keep my skills up being a Kahuna. My battles are supposed to be hard to win. Besides, if they were easy they wouldn’t be fun.” Hau responded, taking Gladion’s hand.

              A pokémon’s cry could be heard and there was a splash of light in the sky. Gladion and Hau stared up at the night sky where they saw the pokémon. Were they the only ones who saw it? All around, people continued their battles and their fun. After a moment, Hau turned back with a smile.

              “I think that pokémon we just saw was Tapu Koko…not the wishing pokémon. It sounded a lot like Tapu Koko.”

“Y-yeah…” Gladion’s wish wouldn’t come true anyway. He’d lost the battle.

              However, as they turned to look at each other, loud music could be heard over head. The people abandoned the battling and were dancing and singing with each other. Everything was so lively and so fun in Iki Town that even Gladion wanted to join in. His eyes caught Hau’s and he felt like everything was about to stop. Oh… This was what love was. This had to be what it felt like. It felt so nice, and yet so painful knowing he would never have the courage to act on his feelings.

              “Dance with me…” Hau said, jerking Gladion from his thoughts.

“What?” Was his wish coming true? He lost…?

“Dance with me! Come on, Gladion! It’ll be fun!”

              Gladion wasn’t given a choice in the matter as he was dragged across town to the heart of the dancing. Hau’s hands intertwined with Gladion’s and they began to dance to the fast-paced music. Gladion kept glancing at his feet nervously and tripping over himself, only to be caught by Hau every single time. One time they went crashing to the ground, but they laughed so hard that they didn’t care. When a slower song started to play, Hau wrapped his arms around Gladion’s waist and began to sway with Gladion in his arms.

              “You need to stop staring at your feet,” Hau laughed softly.

“I don’t know what to do…”

“Don’t think, just let the music do all the work.”

              And they danced late into the night, letting the music guide them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh I am really sorry this took forever. School is busy and I find it hard to write. But I'm back so enjoy!

 

              Gladion awoke in Hau’s bed again. He stretched and found himself wrapped up in a tight embrace. Oh this was so comfortable…wait. He was in Hau’s bed _again_! Ack! His cheeks heat up and he went into panic mode. Why did they keep waking up like this? Actually…he didn’t remember walking home…or getting into bed for that matter… just what happened at the festival? He was interrupted by the strong arms pulling him closer. Hau certainly was a cuddly person. There was no way he could wiggle free, not that he necessarily wanted to escape from Hau.

              Eventually he just gave up and leaned into the embrace, closing his eyes again and pretending to be asleep. As he lay there, he thought about the festival more. He remembered dancing with Hau, they were breathless and laughing. It was well into the night when they finally sat down underneath the tree they made flower crowns under. They had talked for a while before he ended up dosing off. He vaguely remembered strong arms carrying him home. The rest was blurry. He was just so tired from dancing that he couldn’t remember anything else that happened.

              Hau stirred slightly and pulled Gladion closer. Did this man even know what he was doing? Probably not, his dreams were probably full of malasadas. It was cute, Gladion had to admit. Hau just looked so lovely in his sleep. And, at the moment, there was nothing stopping him from reciprocating the hug and nuzzling his way into Hau’s chest. Should he? He could always play it off like he was just dreaming about hugging something. Just…

              What if Hau woke up? What if he pushed Gladion away? But, what would happen if Gladion didn’t take this chance. He’d never know. Perhaps Hau would sleepily open his eyes and murmur how cute Gladion was in the morning. And perhaps he would brush Gladion’s blonde hair from his eyes and tell him how pretty his eyes were. Or maybe he would even lean down to kiss him.

              Slowly, Gladion convinced himself to wrap his arms around Hau’s body before resting his head against Hau’s chest. A deep, contented sigh escaped his lips and he felt like he was finally home. In fact, he was so comfortable in Hau’s embrace, he almost fell asleep again. He was dosing off until he felt gentle hands in his hair. Hau was playing with his hair…was he awake? Dare he open his eyes and find out?

              He didn’t have to as Hau began to speak softly.

              “Heh, you’re such a sleepy head. Oh, I didn’t realize I was hugging you. Should I wake you? We have a day of fun planned before we leave for Akala…But you look so comfy…And I’m so comfy…”

              Gladion opened his eyes after hearing Hau speak to him. But Hau didn’t seem to notice as he kept speaking to him as if he weren’t listening.

              “I’m hugging you really tight, I guess I should let go, but you’re also hugging me—” he seemed interrupted by something, “Leafeon? You must be hungry…I’ll feed you…”

              Hau untangled himself from Gladion and went to pick up the small grass-type pokémon but it only dodged his hands and jumped up to lick Gladion’s face. He laughed slightly, feeling the tongue tickle his face and he sat up. Hau was smiling at him as usual.

              “Guess Leaf wanted to wake you up too, you were awfully tired last night. You fell asleep under the tree.”

“Well you and I danced so much. My feet are still sore,” Gladion muttered back, rubbing his feet. He needed to get out of the lab more so his body wasn’t always so sore.

“Yeah, but you had fun. You were laughing and you are a really good dancer once you start having fun with it. It was nice seeing you like that and not like a grumpy old Murkrow.”

“I am not grumpy!” Gladion huffed.

“Hah, you’re cute when you get all defensive—” Hau was cut off by Gladion tackling his friend to the ground.

              Gladion was soon straddling his hips and smirking down at Hau. He pinned his shoulders to the floor and his long blonde hair fell over his shoulders. Hau looked back at him with a surprised look before he broke into laughter. Gladion could feel his heart pounding in his chest hearing the downright beautiful laugher.

              “I’m not so grumpy anymore, am I?”

“No, no…but, you left your guard down,” Hau said, in between laughs.

“My guard—“

              Now it was Gladion’s turn to be pinned to the floor. He landed with a loud “oof” and as much as he tried, he could not free himself from Hau’s grip. He eventually gave up and lie limp on the floor, gazing up at Hau with soft eyes. They stay that way for a while, the only sound being their breathing. But then, Hau’s eyes travelled down to Gladion’s now-exposed stomach as his tank top had rolled up. His fingers trailed down to the pale skin before they started to tickle Gladion.

              “Hau! No!” Gladion whined before he was forced into fits of laughter. But he was weak to Hau’s tickling fingers. As much as he squirmed, he could not break free of the tickling. Oh gosh he loved Hau so much that he didn’t care that he was being tickled. He desperately wanted to reach up and kiss him.

              Soon the tickling stopped and Gladion was left breathless. He gasped for air as Hau continued to laugh at him.

              “I didn’t know you were so ticklish, Gladion.”

“You had the upper hand, you were using excessive force, you had already won,” Gladion pout once he regained his breath.

“So? I was getting my reward.”

              He let Gladion sit up before sitting back. Gladion wanted to wipe that stupidly gorgeous smirk from his face. Soon they stood up and began to get dressed. It took everything in Gladion’s power not to look at Hau. The man was just so pretty though that he couldn’t help but peek a few times. He liked seeing Hau’s hair down around his shoulders. Sure, it was pretty all pulled up but Gladion felt weak at the knees seeing it down. Getting a crazy idea, he quickly darted forward and stole the hair tie from Hau’s fingers right as he was about to tie up his hair with it.

              “Gladion, what’re you…hey! Gimme that!” Hau shouted as Gladion ran off with the hair tie.

              Hau chased after Gladion, both men laughing loudly as they ran around the house. Unfortunately for Gladion, Hau was much more athletic and eventually caught up to him. His strong arms wrapped around Gladion’s lanky body and lift him off the floor. Naturally this led to the latter shrieking to be let down. However, in the midst of their laughter, they hadn’t noticed Kukui, who was standing in the door. Once the Professor cleared his throat, Hau nearly dropped Gladion.

              “Looks like you two are having fun, I was coming by to see if you two wanted to go out to breakfast. My treat.” Kukui had a knowing smirk that Gladion wanted to punch off his face.

“Oh but Professor you don’t have to, I can pay!” Hau piped up, setting Gladion back on the ground.

“No no, I’ll pay, you two have a whole vacation ahead of you!”

“Yes, but you’re driving us on your boat to Akala tonight as well. It isn’t fair!”

“I’m not taking no for an answer, Hau. Now both of you finish getting dressed so we can eat!”

              Gladion and Hau made their way back to the bedroom but it wasn’t long until Gladion returned. He shot a glare at Kukui before taking a seat next to the professor. Telling Kukui about his crush was a terrible idea because the man was now obsessed with getting him and Hau together.

              “You seem surprisingly calm after last night,” Kukui finally said, speaking up.

“What happened other than our dancing?” Gladion looked concerned.

“He carried you here bridal style. You sleepily demanded that he carry you home.”

“I did what?”

“It was funny. You sort of fell into his arms and asked him to carry you. He just scooped you up and you fell asleep.”

              Kukui was laughing at his freaked out expression. Why did he have to be so annoying about his stupid little crush on Hau? Why did he have to make this crush much harder than it already was? Maybe he should have kept his feelings to himself.

              “Did you two snuggle in bed again? I know Hau wouldn’t make you sleep on the floor or on the couch.”

“We didn’t snuggle, Hau just hugs things in his sleep.”

“Did you hug him back?”

“Maybe…”

“Then it was a snuggle, don’t deny it.”

“Deny what?” Hau asked as he walked into the kitchen.

“Oh nothing, just some science stuff.”

“You scientists are weird…”

              Of course, Hau had to wear the tightest black shirt he owned. That should have been illegal as Gladion could see every single muscle and edge and… Gladion realized he was staring and he looked away with bright pink cheeks. This was so frustrating, especially since Kukui kept poking his side and smirking. They were soon on their way to the restaurant, chatting and laughing happily. Of course, Gladion trailed behind the group. He only wanted to observe. However, he had a tendency to get distracted easily. Hau was too distracting and it drove him crazy! Why did Hau have to be so pretty?

              They made their way into the restaurant but Gladion was still distracted by Hau. He barely noticed when the waitress took their order and he couldn’t remember eating much. He just watched the way Hau moved and laughed and chatted with everyone. Gladion could almost feel those hands on his body again. He could still smell Hau, the scent of the salty sea breeze that constantly flooded Gladion’s senses.

              “Glad? You alright? You’ve been staring at nothing for a while now,” Hau said, breaking his reverie.

“Huh…? I’m fine…Just thinking….”

“About what?”

“…Some science stuff…”

“You work yourself too hard. You look stiff again, maybe I should give you another massage.”

“Uhhh.”

              Luckily for Gladion, the waitress came by to collect there bill and Hau was distracted from the conversation. Kukui paid, much to the dismay of Hau and Gladion but Kukui wouldn’t let them. It wasn’t long before they walked out of the restaurant and made their way to collect their things. They only had bags that they could carry on their backs. They would be travelling so they didn’t need large suitcases. Plus, you could fit _a lot_ in backpacks. They almost seemed endless. Gladion could have sworn he saw Moon pull a bike out of her bag. Kantonians were so weird.

              They made their way to Kukui’s old boat, Hau taking the wheel. Of course he knew how to drive a boat. What couldn’t the perfect Kahuna do? Gladion took a seat next to Hau and sighed softly. He silently watched the movements of Hau’s hands as they began to navigate the boat to Akala. Gladion smiled slightly. He had met Hau on Akala. Sure, it wasn’t in the best of circumstances but he and Hau were now friends. And he loved their friendship.

              A loud shout was heard out in the open water, and the captain of the water trial waved to the boat. She was astride a Lapras, a ride pokémon, and was speeding after the boat. Hau laughed seeing her following the boat. Then they heard another shout, a louder and wilder one. There was Moon, chasing after them with her Primarina. Gladion couldn’t help but roll his eyes as the Champion and Lana played in the water.

              “They look like they are having fun,” Hau commented.

“Yeah they do.”

“We should join them.”

“Wait, what?”

              Hau had stopped the boat and showed that he was already wearing swim trunks. He quickly pulled his shirt off and leapt over the side of the boat. At first he submerged under the water, but he quickly resurfaced, laughing.

              “Gladion! Come join me!”

“Hau! That’s open water!”

“So? Come on! It’ll be fun, you Grumpig.”

              Gladion wasn’t even wearing a bathing suit. And he couldn’t swim that well either. But… Hau was there. And he didn’t want to be left out. Hesitantly he ducked under the dash and rapidly pulled his bathing suit on. He stood up, flushed with embarrassment. He hated the way he looked in swimsuits. They were uncomfortable. Slowly, he walked up to the edge of the boat, where Hau and the girls were now swimming. Hau and Moon were rough-housing, dunking each other. A pang of jealousy caused a fire to burn in his stomach. He bent his knees, ready to jump. But fear seized ahold of him. He couldn’t jump.

              “Gladion!”

              He looked up to see Hau waving at him and a sense of calm washed over him for a moment. His eyes focused on Hau’s and he jumped into the water. It washed over him and it felt good but then fear settled in. Oh no. He was in the water and he couldn’t swim well oh no. Oh no. He surfaced and gasped for air, his breathing picking up out of panic. His eyes were blurry from the water. He couldn’t see anything and he was desperately treading water.

              But then warm arms surrounded him and he blinked the water from his eyes. Hau was holding him close to his chest, like he did while they slept in Hau’s room. Gladion looked up at Hau, and he realized that he was shaking.

              “Hey…It’s okay…you can hold onto me if you’re scared…”

“I’m not scared…” Gladion mumbled.

“You’re shaking…But I’ve got you.”

              Hau slowly began to swim, hugging Gladion close still. He kept guiding Gladion through the water, gently encouraging him and assuring him that it was alright. It was like the world was melting away as Gladion stared up at his friend. Part of him wanted to lean up and kiss those stupidly perfect lips. He was, luckily, jolted from his thoughts when Moon called out to them from the water.

              “We’re heading into shore! See you there, guys!”

              She and Lana headed toward Akala Island, leaving Hau and Gladion alone in the water. It didn’t take Hau long to bring Gladion to the boat and for them to speed toward Akala. Gladion was still bright red from being so close to Hau. This crush was getting him nowhere. All it did was cause time to slow down and his heart to pound against his chest. He was lost in thought even after they docked.

              Once they were on dry land, Hau handed Gladion a fluffy towel and his bag. Gladion took them graciously, as he was shivering from the cold and was desperate to cover up his scrawny, pale body. It was almost embarrassing to be shirtless around the muscular Kahuna. Hau was certainly getting looks from girls and it made Gladion sick to his stomach.

              Moon and Lana made their way to them when they saw they had finally docked. Lana hadn’t changed much at all, except for maybe her height and her hair. She was older looking but she still held the energy she had back when Hau was on his island challenge. Moon was a different story. Her silky black hair was longer, much longer. And she certainly had grown up a lot. The girl now looked like a real champion. She carried herself like she was powerful, and she really was. No one had defeated her since her rise to champion. But, like Hau, she was still as carefree as when she was 11 years old.

              Gladion couldn’t help but be jealous of Moon. She was beautiful, strong, almost perfect, and she seemed to attract Hau’s eyes. They got along perfectly too. Moon and Hau had done their island challenges together. They fought Gladion’s mother together. And rose to be great people together. Gladion hadn’t done much. He sort of felt inferior.

              He quietly followed the group to the hotel at which they would be staying, keeping his distance. He never wanted to be further away from Hau.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops! Sorry about the long hiatus. I wish I could say updates will be regular but they probably won't be until summer. Also with the release of Ultra Sun and Moon, I decided that I will stick to the normal story line of the original Sun and Moon games instead of the alternate timeline. Anyway, enjoy

              Gladion walked with the group to the hotel they would be staying at. The girls were going to stay at Lana’s house but they happily walked with them to the hotel in Hea Hea City. Thanks to Gladion’s influence, they were able to get a room for pretty cheap compared to what it normally was. They were allowed to splurge at least a little bit while they were on vacation. That was what vacations were for.

              They made their way up to the hotel room, riding in a pretty fancy-looking elevator. On the way up, the girls constantly pestered Gladion with questions about the Aether Paradise and his job and other random questions. He tried to keep up with them but their questions were so rapid.

              “Hau told me that you have been working too much, Gladdy. You really shouldn’t be working yourself that hard,” Moon said, winking at her friend.

“Well, I’m working to protect pokémon…it’s a tough job.”

“Yeah, but you gotta get out and see the world to actually find the pokémon you need to protect. Also you seem to be slouching a lot when you stand. You gotta stop hunching over a computer screen.”

“I know, Hau complains about my back and how much it cracks.”

“It sounds awful!” Hau piped up as he rest his hand on Gladion’s shoulder. “Maybe I should massage your back again, because it still cracks.”

              The girls giggled hearing that and giggled more seeing the way Gladion’s blush grew bigger. Why did they have to be so perceptive? They continued to pester Gladion all the way to their room. He was quite glad when they said they would head back to Lana’s place for the moment. Finally, he would have a moment of peace, and a moment free of his jealousy.

              Moon may have giggled at the little indications of Gladion’s crush, but that didn’t stop her from being downright beautiful. Who wouldn’t want to date the beautiful champion of Alola? And Hau was her childhood best friend. They had a history together. She was the ideal match for Hau and Gladion couldn’t seem to compete.

              However, he had a moment alone with Hau again. They had this whole hotel room to themselves…except for the fact that Gladion noted that there were two beds. Why was he so disappointed at that? He wouldn’t have to wake up to anymore embarrassing moments. But…he started looking forward to being wrapped in Hau’s embraces. With a sigh, Gladion set his bag down and grabbed a change of clothes before he ducked into the bathroom.

              After he had changed, he walked out of the bathroom to see that Hau had changed as well. He was standing on their balcony and staring out at the beach. The warm sun caused his dark skin to glow and Gladion could not help but feel his heart flutter. It fluttered so much that it started to ache. This crush was beginning to hurt the longer Gladion was around Hau.

              He made his way out to the balcony where Gladion was standing and took a seat next to him. The afternoon sun was quite beautiful and the sea breeze that surrounded them made the moment all the more perfect. Hau turned to look at Gladion after a moment.

              “This is a really nice hotel…and we get it all to ourselves. You know, the captains are on a bit of a vacation at the moment as well.”

“Captains and Kahunas can take vacations?”

“Yeah, once in a while. All work and no play is no way to live.”

“So that’s why you dragged me on this vacation?”

“Sort of. I also never get to see you, so it’s nice to spend all this time with you.”

              And Hau shot Gladion the brightest smile in the world. Gladion’s chest felt like it would burst from the flood of Beautiflies that fluttered in his body. Why did Hau have to be the living embodiment of sunshine? And why did Gladion have to have a stupid crush on that sunshine?

              “I’m glad I get to spend time with you too, Hau.”

              Gladion had half a mind to lean up and kiss Hau. In fact, he really could kiss him. His lips were right there. But no. He couldn’t kiss Hau. That would be too awkward. And Gladion had never kissed anyone in his life before. It would completely ruin their friendship and that was the last thing that Gladion wanted.

              “Hey, Gladion, I’m gonna go help Mallow collect some ingredients for dinner tonight. She invited us and all the other captains to have a big feast.”

“Um, I’m actually okay. I’m just gonna rest up before dinner and maybe wash the salt-water out of my hair.”

“Oh…Alright. Well I’ll see you later then.”

              Hau seemed a little disappointed that Gladion didn’t want to tag along but he didn’t press the issue. He just left the apartment. Gladion nearly felt his heart snap in two. What was he doing? Why was he trying to push Hau away? He wanted Hau to like him back and he was ruining everything. Moon definitely was a better partner for Hau. She wouldn’t push Hau away. She didn’t have a troubled childhood she was still working through. She was the freaking champion of Alola! Who wouldn’t want her?

              Gladion felt tears well up in his eyes and he covered his face with his hands. Oh great. Now he was crying like some idiot. Ugh. Why did he have to have this crush? Why did he have to fall in love with Hau? He hurriedly wiped the tears away as they fell. Why was he even crying over this?

              And then a Pokémon’s cry startled him from his tears. It appeared to be a Toucannon and the shiny coloring indicated that it was Moon’s (She often joked that it had the same colors as the bisexual flag. Gladion never quite understood why she was so amused). It cawed at him before flying back down to its trainer who was waving up to the balcony.

              “Hey! Gladion! Can you come down here? I need to talk to you!”

“Sure! Give me a minute!” Gladion called back, making sure his face was completely free of tears.

              He made his way down to the lobby and the front of the hotel to greet Moon. She almost instantly grabbed his arm and began dragging him toward the city.

              “H-Hey! Where are you dragging me now?” Gladion stuttered as she pulled him along.

“Clothes shopping!”

“I thought you wanted to talk?”

“Well we can talk while we shop. But you need some new summer clothes.”

              So Moon dragged Gladion to the different clothes shops in Hea Hea City. He was forced to try on gaudy tourist shirts and baggy pants while Moon tried on cute sun dresses. Despite all of his protests, he did actually enjoy the shopping trip. Moon was really sweet with him and tried to cheer him up. She clearly knew that he was upset about something but she didn’t really seem to pester him about it. Eventually, Gladion ended up buying a new black tank top and some shorts that Moon picked for him as well as a few other ensembles. Of course, Moon kept insisting that Gladion try on _something_ that wasn’t black.

              “Come on, Gladion, you would look so good in red!”

“Until I get sunburnt…”

“Oooh, what about orange?”

“Are you just going to go down the colors of the rainbow until we find something?”

“Yes.”

It turned out that Gladion did look good in red. He would not give Moon the satisfaction of knowing that he admired himself in the mirror a little bit. She would never let him live it down. It pained him a bit when he wondered what Hau would think of his outfit. As if he would notice… He pushed the thought out of his head as they paid for their clothes.

              “Hey Gladion,” Moon began as they were walking back to the hotel. “Do you like Hau?”

“Uh…”

“You don’t have to answer. I know you do. And you’re worried that I might be a better girlfriend for him, right?”

“Yeah…Yeah you’re right…” Gladion admitted, looking down at his feet ashamedly.

“Well, I don’t really know how Hau feels about you romantically. But you don’t have to worry about me. I’m not really into guys like him.”

“Really? Well, what kind of guys are you into?”

“Uh…well I sort of…have a huge crush on your sister.”

              That made Gladion stop in his tracks. Did he hear her right? Moon and Lillie. A huge smile broke out on his face. That actually made him really happy. He would love to see his sister and Moon become a couple. There was no one he approved more to date his sister.

              “That’s really cute… Have you said anything yet?”

“No…I’m sort of in the same boat as you and Hau.”

“Unrequited love…”

“Yeah. So you aren’t alone. I understand what you’re going through. So please don’t get so upset on your own. You have me to talk to about this.”

“Thank you, Moon.”

              Moon opened her arms for a hug and Gladion gladly accepted it. He felt really bad for getting so jealous of Moon. Especially now knowing that he had absolutely nothing to worry about. At least on her end. There was no telling who Hau was interested in. He was so cheerful and friendly to _everybody._ He was comfortable with everybody. There wasn’t anything in his behavior that suggested a crush.

              They broke the hug apart after a few seconds and walked back to the hotel. This time, Moon walked up with Gladion to their room. She kept insisting that Gladion change into his new clothes. He didn’t see what the problem was with what he had on but she really was not giving him a choice in the matter. He slipped into the bathroom and pulled on some of the new clothes he bought. After a moment, he let his hair fall from the ponytail holder and spill over his shoulders.

              When he exited the bathroom, Moon lit up like a Lanturn.

              “Gladdy! You look great!” she exclaimed with a little bit of a squeal.

              Gladion looked at himself in the mirror and actually grinned. He looked like a completely different person. Sure, he just changed his clothes and hair, but he felt different. Like he was relaxing a bit. Maybe this vacation was actually helping him out in that respect.

              “Thanks, Moon…”

“I’m sure Hau will love it too,” and she winked at him. “We should get going to Mallow’s place. It’s a little ways off.”

              It was a little while before they finally arrived at Mallow’s house where they were greeted by the trial captain and chef. She ushered Moon and Gladion to her backyard where a long table was set out. The captains from all the islands were sitting around the table, chatting happily to each other. Hau looked up hearing Moon and Gladion walk over and he waved Gladion over. He’d saved a seat next to him for Gladion. That made Gladion extremely happy and he took a seat near his friend.

              “Whoa, Gladion!” Lana exclaimed when she saw him sit down. “Your hair has gotten so long!”

“Yeah, Gladion,” Acerola agreed, “you look great. You aren’t wearing all black like creepy ghost-type pokémon.”

“Yeah…I figured I’d let my hair down…literally and figuratively…” Gladion laughed nervously, until he noticed Hau staring at him rather serenely.

“I like your hair like this…” Hau said softly.

              That caused Gladion to blush deeply. Of course Hau had to make Gladion blush _again_. How could one man be so sweet? The girls continued to gush over Gladion’s new look. Unbeknownst to Gladion, Hau was leaning against his hand, staring dreamily at Gladion. Part of Hau wanted to reach out and touch Gladion’s hair. But he didn’t. They were both distracted when Mallow brought their food out to the table.

              Dinner was phenomenal. The way Mallow cooked just made each flavor pop. It was _heavenly_. Gladion wasn’t one to eat a whole lot of food, but by the time they finished the main course, he could feel his new clothes growing just a tiny bit tighter. Throughout their meal, the captains chatted happily to each other, reminiscing about old times, discussing the latest trial goers, and other random battles that they’d had. Occasionally they asked Gladion about his research, but the main focus was definitely on the Champion who had recently battled the champion of Sinnoh.

              “I used to be confused as to how Platinum defeated Cynthia, but this girl is powerful! I can see how she defeated that Garchomp. That was a super close battle too! I almost won but her Empoleon’s steel type moves got the final blow on Primarina,” Moon said excitedly, the other captains on the edge of their seats throughout the entire recap of the battle.

              Gladion enjoyed listening to the stories of her battles. Something about champion battles always seemed so exciting. The ex-champions and current champions were all such incredible people with powerful pokémon. It made Gladion want to battle more. Maybe he would ask Hau to challenge a battle royale with him.

              After dessert and a couple hours of conversation, Hau and Gladion waved goodbye to their friends and walked to the hotel. They took their time, though, enjoying the warm summer night. They paused for a moment on a bridge near the hotel just to savor how beautiful the evening was.

              “It’s so beautiful here when it’s nighttime…” Hau sighed happily as he looked out at the ocean.

“Yeah…I never really noticed before…”

“You should take vacations more often, so we can spend more time like this.”

“I want to Hau, but…”

“But you’re married to your work…” Hau sort of seemed a little frustrated and it startled Gladion to see Hau’s features in anything but a lazy grin.

“I’m…I’m not…”

“Gladion, you can’t overwork yourself. You just have this habit of dedicating yourself to something and then blocking out everything else…I’m worried about you. You always seem so distant…”

“That’s not because of my work…that’s just how I am…after everything…”

“That’s why I’m worried…you’re there where everything happened so long ago. You can’t be completely comfortable there…even with your mother in Kanto and your father back and everything…I can tell you still have bad memories…”

“Hau…Hau, I’m fine…it’s hard there, yes…but…” Gladion paused for a moment, “But I’m an adult now and I’ve put everything behind me. I’ve made the Aether foundation a paradise again. Just…stop pushing the issue.”

              That accidentally came out a little harsh and Hau backed off. They were silent again as they walked to the hotel. But now their silence was rather tense. It upset Gladion that he snapped at Hau but he really did just want him to stop reminding him of his past. He had enough nightmares about Null and Nebby and the ultrabeasts already.

              The silence continued as they got ready for bed. In their separate beds. Hau was asleep right when his head hit the pillow. It took Gladion a little longer to fall asleep without Hau’s strong arms around him. He’d took the comforting embrace for granted. He really did fall asleep easier cuddling with Hau. He stared over at Hau’s bed and he noticed that Hau had his back towards him. That…that actually hurt a bit.

              It was his fault for snapping at Hau and making him upset. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to fall asleep. It took a while but eventually he slipped into the world of dreams.

              He was completely alone. No Null, no Hau. Nobody. He was alone. He could hear Hau calling out to him but he could not see him. Where was Hau? Why wasn’t he here? And then he heard a twisted laugh echoing from the abyss of his nightmare. Was that…was that Hau’s laugh?

              And then there was Faba’s evil glare. His twisted sneer. There was the ultrabeast appearing in the wormhole, and Lusamine following along. There was the glimpse of the monster his mother transformed into because of Nihilego. There were the cries of Nebby. The crying of Lillie. There were the cries of Null. The cries of himself, begging the scientists not to hurt Null. Please don’t hurt it! Don’t hurt Null! His eyes snapped awake and he shot up to a sitting position.

              Gladion was in a cold sweat, and he was shaking. And a sob escaped his mouth. He hadn’t realized he’d been crying but suddenly he was aware of the hot tears falling down his cheeks. He was aware that his shoulders shook in time with his loud sobs. But he wasn’t aware of a mattress creaking nor was he aware of the soft footsteps approaching him. He felt the mattress dip slightly and then he was aware of warm arms wrapped around his body.

              It didn’t take long for Gladion to burrow his face into the crook of Hau’s neck as he cried. He normally didn’t get this upset around others. He saved his tears for Null and even then, it wasn’t like this. But he managed to calm himself down. Hau was gently rubbing his back and that seemed to have a soothing effect on Gladion. His eyes closed after a moment and he rubbed his eyes.

              “Gladion…It’s okay…It’s okay…”

“I keep dreaming about Null…they tried to hurt it...”

“I know…I’m here…”

“Don’t leave…please stay…”

“I wasn’t planning on leaving…” his voice was right in his ear before he felt a soft pair of lips against his temple. “Take some deep breaths…try to relax…”

              Hau laid back with Gladion resting on his chest. His heartbeat created a steady drumbeat for Gladion to listen to and it was accompanied by the soft humming of an old Alolan lullaby. He slowly began to fall asleep, but this time he dreamt of dancing in Iki town, the warm arms wrapped around him, and the gentle voice that was slowly singing him to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAH I'M BACK! Sorry this took me forever to upload. I am behind on like...everything I'm writing at the moment! But I decided to try something new with this chapter. This fic will probably have a few more chapters left before I move onto more Haudion fluff in this series so get ready! I know what's going to happen and I know how this will wrap up. I really hope you like it and thank you for sticking with me for so long!

              Gladion woke up a little disoriented. It was early in the morning when he looked out at the sun barely poking its head out from under the horizon. He was very aware of the hands that were resting on the small of his back and he relaxed against Hau’s chest. Then he remembered the events of the night before and he sighed. Hau would ask questions when he woke up. And Gladion did _not_ want to answer them. So he detangled himself from the strong arms and slipped off of the bed.

              He got dressed quickly and carefully, making sure he had his pokémon with him before he left the hotel room. Gladion desperately had to clear his head from his stupid feelings and his nightmare. Being emotional, upset, and in love was an exceptionally dangerous situation.

              So, he had to leave. He just hoped Hau wouldn’t get too worried.

***

              Hau blinked his eyes open. He stretched and went to wrap his arms around Gladion. But…wait? Where was Gladion? He sat up and looked around the room and listened for the sound of footsteps. There was nothing. Gladion’s pajamas were strewn on the floor and his pokémon were gone as well. Where did he go? Hau got the sinking feeling that it was his fault but he tried to stay optimistic. He had to stay optimistic about it. Maybe he just went on a walk. That had to be it. Of course. But Hau still felt a bit of fear… a bit of panic. Had he scared Gladion off?

              It wasn’t long before he had gotten dressed and he quickly ran out of the hotel. He couldn’t have gotten far, could he? Gladion couldn’t run fast at all. But he could have gotten a head start. Oh Gladion… Why couldn’t he realize that Hau loved him?

               Hau ran quickly to Lana’s house and knocked on the door. She opened the door bleary eyed but immediately snapped to attention when she heard that Gladion had gone missing.

              “He’s missing? Since when?” Lana questioned, worry appearing on her features.

“Since this morning. He and his pokémon are gone…”

“Who’s gone?” Moon asked when she walked to the door.

“Gladion. He just left this morning.”

“What? Why did he leave?” Moon interrogated further. “Did something happen last night?”

“Well…we sort of argued a bit…and then Gladion woke up screaming from a nightmare so we cuddled and he just…left…” Hau sighed at the last thing he said. “It’s my fault…”

“Hau…Gladion’s just going through a lot.”

“No…No. I was too forward with him. Ugh…He probably thinks I’m weird and romantic and he probably is disgusted with the fact that I love him.” Now Hau was worked up. He was worked up and hating himself. This was nothing like the Hau they grew up with.

              Moon looked at him for a long time before she took his hands and squeezed them tightly. Hau looked up at his best friend before taking a deep breath.

              “I know for a fact that he doesn’t think you’re weird. You boys are the most oblivious boys I have ever met. You know Gladion…where do you think he would go? Especially if he was stressed?”

              Hau took a deep breath and tried to think of where his friend went. Where did Gladion go whenever he was upset? And then he remembered their childhood and one of the first few battles he had with Gladion. He had to be at the Battle Royal Dome. That was where he always went to battle away his stress. Without a word to Moon, Hau took off in the direction of the Wela Volcano Park. He knew near its base was the Dome. He had to find Gladion.

              By the time Hau made it to the Battle Royal Dome, he was panting because he was so out of breath. His chest heaved as he walked up to the building. He looked around but Gladion was nowhere to be found. He usually was here…why wasn’t he here? Hau exited the Dome and slid down the wall. He was exhausted and tired and…hungry… Hau thought he knew Gladion well enough to find him but he didn’t. These feelings…he’d felt them before when he was a child. When he couldn’t protect Lillie and Nebby. Uselessness? Defeat? They all bubbled up inside of his body.

              But, he couldn’t give up. He couldn’t let these feelings overcome him. When one plan didn’t work, you had to come up with a new one. Hau wiped his face of the tears that had fallen without him knowing before he rose to his full height. Gladion couldn’t have left the island in that amount of time. He wouldn’t leave most of his stuff either. So Hau resolved to look for Gladion. He walked up the path leading to the volcano park. Maybe Kiawe would have seen him. He had to try every option.

**

              Gladion didn’t mean to be out all day. He just wanted to clear his head and maybe avoid Hau until he was ready to talk. Oh, what was he thinking? Don’t kid yourself, Gladion, he thought. He just desperately wanted to avoid Hau because he was afraid of confessing his feelings. A heart-to-heart with Hau would reveal his stupid crush and he wasn’t ready to say anything. But right now, he was stuck in another mess.

              After swinging by the Battle Royal, Gladion decided to walk in the volcano park, maybe watch the Pokémon there for his research. And then, of course, he found a shiny Salandit. Like every Pokémon trainer, finding a shiny Pokémon was always an exciting experience and he chased after it. He chased after it right off of a small ledge that he could have easily jumped over. But he ended up falling and twisting his ankle pretty badly. He couldn’t even stand up on it, it hurt so much.

              The Salandit had distracted Gladion from what he was running from, and it seemed to have disappeared in the commotion. So now his sprained ankle was for nothing. He groaned and tried to take his shoe off of his probably swelling foot. But the pain brought tears to his eyes as he jostled his ankle. He managed to free his foot from his shoe, but he most definitely wasn’t standing up anytime soon. He slumped against the ledge and sighed softly.

              A thought came to Gladion after a while and he reached for the pokéballs attached to his belt, letting his Silvally out. Null stared down at Gladion with an upset expression before it nuzzled against his trainer’s face. It wanted to make sure he was alright and he licked over his face protectively.

              “Null, hey, I’m glad you’re concerned…I need you to go get help, okay? I can’t walk, and I don’t think I can get on your back…”

              Null tried to lift its trainer up but it was no use, it couldn’t get Gladion up due to its larger size. So, the Pokémon only nodded in understanding before running off to find someone to help. Gladion watched his friend go but he felt pretty lonely now. Sure, he had his other Pokémon with him but he couldn’t let them out being injured like he was. And, part of him just wanted to be alone with his thoughts for a while.

              He couldn’t stop thinking of Hau and how desperately he wanted to be with him… and yet as far away from him as possible at the same time. This whole situation could have been avoided if he had just sucked it up and actually just stuck around with Hau. He could have stayed cuddled in that embrace. He could have nuzzled closer to Hau, taken in the scent of the salty sea breeze, felt those comforting hands pulling him even closer, if that was even possible at that point. Hau might not have even asked him about his nightmare.

              And now Gladion was hurt and upset and alone in a very hot volcano park. He felt miserable and his eyes began to water. Soon, his shoulders were shaking and he was full on crying now. Great, he was just a mess. He cried last night and he was crying now. The only difference was that no one was here to even comfort him. His hands covered his mouth and he tried to hold in the sobs that were threatening to escape his body.

              He just wanted someone to come and help him…No…He wanted Hau. He wasn’t lying to himself anymore. Gladion loved Hau. He loved Hau.

              “Hau…” he whispered quietly to himself. “I want Hau.”

              Part of him regretted only wishing for a dance with Hau back at the festival. He didn’t just want a dance, he wanted to wake up every morning wrapped up in Hau’s arms. He wanted to hold Hau’s hand and share kisses under the moonlight. He wanted to spend every day on vacation with Hau. Gladion curled into himself and wished Hau would come and find him.

              And then he heard a voice.

“Gladion!”

Gladion’s head shot up when he realized who was running toward him and suddenly he was curled up close to Hau. He gripped onto his shirt tightly and hiccupped softly as Hau questioned him. Eventually, Hau’s questions trailed off and Gladion’s tears stopped. They were just hugging each other tightly. Only Null broke them from their embrace when it nudged them and whined.

“Oh…yeah…Null found me as I was coming to find you…I was so worried…” Hau looked down at Gladion with eyes full of concern.

“I’m sorry…I shouldn’t have run off…”

“I shouldn’t have driven you away…”

“Hau, it wasn’t your fault…I needed to clear my head…and then I was chasing a shiny Pokémon and then I fell…” Gladion trailed off when he noticed the look on Hau’s face.

“…But why did you need to clear your head…”

“Because…Because I didn’t want to talk about my dream…and what’s on my mind. I don’t deal with my issues. I save them for later. And I didn’t want to fall apart on you. I don’t want to fall apart on anyone. After mom and the ultrabeasts and Null and…everything…I can’t…I never let myself cry or feel or anything. I didn’t have the opportunity to…I just…I just…”

              Gladion felt more large tears running down his face at this point and he reached up to wipe them away.

              “I’ve kept so much bottled up because I need to keep myself together. For Null…For the foundation…for you. I can’t afford to fall apart.”

“Gladion…You can always fall apart with me if you need to…” And Hau reached up to cup Gladion’s cheeks. He brought their faces close before resting their foreheads together. “I’m here for you, always.”

              They sat with each other like that for a few moments before they heard Kiawe calling them. Kiawe ran down the path to them and he explained that Moon let him know that Gladion was missing. Hau explained that Gladion just got hurt on his morning walk before Kiawe invited them back to his house so they could take care of Gladion’s ankle.

              Hau scooped Gladion up bridal style at that point and carried him back to Kiawe’s house. Gladion was blushing like an idiot as he was carried but he didn’t protest at all. He just leaned into the gentle touches on his body. Null gave Gladion a look like it knew exactly what he was thinking. And then the Silvally almost smirked at Gladion. He stuck his tongue out at the Pokémon before he rest his head against Hau’s chest gently. Hau only smiled lazily at the interaction between Gladion and his Silvally.

              It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at Kiawe’s house. While Kiawe called Moon to let the others know Gladion had been found, Hau was treating Gladion’s ankle. Kiawe had given them a spare bedroom and Gladion was now laying on the bed with his foot propped up and Hau doting over Gladion. After about ten minutes of Hau trying to make Gladion comfortable, Gladion reached up and pulled Hau down to the bed.

              “Quit fussing over me and just lay here. You look exhausted,” Gladion commanded, rolling his eyes.

“Sorry…I can’t help but worry…”

“You don’t have to worry. I’m fine now…”

“Hey, Gladion?” Hau started, looking over at Gladion with a gentle gaze. “We have to share this bed…”

“You say that like we haven’t been sharing a bed since we started this vacation. I’m comfortable with it…and…I actually sleep better with you…”

              Hau looked surprised for a moment before he quickly snuggled close to Gladion and pulled him into a warm cuddle. Gladion couldn’t help but smile as he started to fall asleep in Hau’s arms. In fact, he was dozing off so much that he didn’t hear the last thing Hau said to him.

              It was a barely audible “I love you.”

               


End file.
